Trung Dong Ngan Temple

Trung Dong Ngan Temple worships the deity Minh Khiet Dai Vuong, a native of Dong Ngan village. He, together with Bao Khang, helped Saint Giong defeat the An invaders and protect the mountains, rivers, and borders of the southern country, and was worshipped by the people of Dong Ngan village as the village tutelary deity.

Trung Temple is located among three temples, at the center of the village. Around the temple, the landscape is airy and cool, with many lush trees. The temple is small in scale, with an architectural layout in the “đinh” including the front hall and rear sanctuary. The front hall is a horizontal building with 3 bays, built in the style of gable-end walls with bít đốc, tay ngai connected to biểu pillars. The roof is covered with native tiles in the shape of mũi hài, the ridge is built in the bờ đinh style, and in the middle of the ridge is a tam sơn symbol attached to a small white-glazed porcelain plate painted in blue. The front opens with 3 rectangular doors and low thresholds. The three bays of the front hall are structured by 4 roof-supporting trusses, and the veranda is narrow. The rear sanctuary runs longitudinally to the rear and connects directly with the front hall, consisting of 2 bays in the style of gable-end walls with bít đốc, tay ngai; the roof is covered with mũi hài tiles, and the ridge is built in the bờ đinh style. In the main central bay, a brick altar is built against the rear wall, arranged with a long throne, ancestral tablet for worshipping the saint, and other ritual objects. Decoration on the architecture of Trung Dong Ngan Temple focuses on the con rường, kẻ hiên, đấu kê with relief carvings of cloud motifs and geometric motifs, painted vermilion to highlight the decorations. The temple still preserves the deity’s legends and deity edicts; at the Institute of Social Sciences Information there are 6 edicts, including 2 early edicts dated the 10th year of Tu Duc (1857), the 33rd year of Tu Duc (1880), the 2nd year of Dong Khanh (1887), the 3rd year of Duy Tan (1909), and the 9th year of Khai Dinh (1924); a long throne, an incense table carved with dragons, a curtain door carved with the four sacred creatures and four seasons, a horizontal plaque “Toi Linh Tu” and many other ritual objects in the artistic style of the 20th century.

Every year, the temple holds a festival coinciding with the festival days of Thuong Temple and Ha Dong Ngan Temple.

The Trung Dong Ngan Temple relic was ranked as a city-level historical and artistic relic under Decision No. 2408/QĐ-UBND dated December 4, 2008.